Nosgothica
by FullMoonEclipse
Summary: Set in twenty-first century Nosgoth, a dark conspiracy threatens to send the entire country into chaos again. With Kain long since dead, it falls to Nysa, Guardian of Death to set things right. Inspired by Dragonaia's Mirrors of Balance and Kojiokida2's continuation of the games. ON TEMPORARY HIATUS DUE TO SCHOOL. Sorry!
1. Chapter 1

_Legacy of Kain  
Nosgothica_

 _ **A/N:**_ _So here we are again, it's always such a pleasure…Here we go again with a new fanfic, inspired by Dragonaia's_ Mirrors of Balance _(which hasn't been updated since 2008), with references to Kojiokida2's canon from their continuation of the games, since that's the only canon I can probably go off of at the moment. Seriously, go read both of their fics, it's good stuff. Here's hoping you guys like this as much as the last one._

It was quiet on that one rainy night. A tap came at the window, and Thea had gotten up to see who it was, dragging herself reluctantly from a good night's sleep, but she had an idea who would be bothering her at this time of night. She opened the window, and looked down at the figure below, soaking wet and wearing a hoodie.

"Nysa." She sighed. "Did you get kicked out again?"

From under the hood of the figure's jacket, a pale face stared back up at her, violet eyes and an earnest smile. "Something like that."

Thea invited her friend inside, letting her borrow a pair of pyjamas and setting up a spare mattress for her to sleep on. "So, what'd you do?"

"There was an argument. I wouldn't roll over, so I ran off." Nysa laid back on the mattress and stretched out. "I'll just deal with it later, I guess."

"Your arguments seem to end in you getting dragged out of my house at unholy hours by suspicious individuals." Thea sat down next to her. "They know you by name- my folks think you're a bad influence." Nysa didn't seem to care much, having dropped off to sleep like she usually did whenever she visited, so Thea pulled the blankets over her and went back to bed.

The rain let up an hour later, and with the clear skies came a firm knock at the door. Thea's parents answered the door to find a tall woman with grey hair waiting on the other side of it, and a taller man behind her, a sword at his hip. "Take me to Nysa." The short command didn't seem like much, but the golden eyes of this stern woman held an ages-old power, mastered over a century, and Thea's parents were helpless to resist. The man opened the door, and Thea and Nysa were on their feet immediately. The woman walked in, looking less than pleased, but Nysa didn't seem fazed.

"Lycella. Charon." Her curt greeting was met with silence.

The tall woman, Lycella, crossed her arms. "You're coming home, Nysa. Now."

––  
Our tale does not begin there, however. First we must look back into Nosgoth's past, back to when the vampire lord, Kain, took his victory over the parasitic Elder God and once more banished the Hylden to the Demon Dimension. He let the humans have their kingdoms, bringing their Kings to understand the significance of vampires to this land, and how the turning of the Pillar Guardians preserved the Binding that held back their enemies.

It was agreed then, that the guardians would be in the care of a handler until they came of age. Nosgoth prospered ever since then, the land growing abundant with life once more. But one day, some centuries ago, Kain disappeared, and a new Balance guardian was born. Responsibility of the fledglings went to Vorador from there, and the Circle continued to serve Nosgoth ever since.

Some guardians, however, didn't take well to it. There was a certain age for how old a guardian could be before they were turned, and in modern times that age had come to thirty, but some were turned sooner. The ones who were turned early for misbehaving or because they needed to be taught proper obedience that came with being a fledgling were usually the problem, abusing their position or causing too many problems. As the world progressed, outside countries expressed their distaste for how the Guardians were treated. The Vatican attempted to intervene and put an end to the tradition, but it was so deeply ingrained that they could not drive it out.

Another part of Nosgothic culture involved a government agency known as the Department for Vampiric Control, who despite the name, kept the peace when it came to the vampire population of Nosgoth. Vampires who were too dangerous or powerful were executed by hunters, but only with enough reported evidence.

However, investigating a case where a vampire is the apparent culprit is often affected by bias. Though they are part of Nosgoth's unique culture, there are still prejudices against them, and lesser Hunter families try to get termination orders for many high-profile vampires just to look like professionals. Elite families are often called in to terminate much stronger, older vampires, but sometimes the small fry get a good catch, if they're lucky enough.

Our story starts on a cold night, on the streets of Avernus. Avernus had retained many of its medieval structures, but after the second world war they had been rebuilt with modern fittings. Once a strictly religious city had become one of the most popular shopping districts in all of Nosgoth, with its fair share of ghost stories to entertain the tourists with. It also had the largest and oldest cemetery next to that of Willendorf or Meridian, and it was the number one place for a specific group of vampires at night. It ever so happened that this was Nysa's favourite stomping ground. She sat around a fire with these vamps, Avernusites every one. Well, except Pard. The kid was kind of a mutt, a Meridian street rat and not the brightest bulb of the bunch, but at least he was loyal to Nysa as both an informant and friend- she loved him like a brother.

They were all drinking with blood being passed around and Nysa herself was nursing a brew while they sang, danced, talked and laughed in celebration- one among the group, Roman, had just come out of the state of change after spending a hundred years as a fledgling, and everyone was excited to see his new gift. This was the first time Nysa had met him, but she'd been told by the others that he was a good kid and they'd all gotten along well through the night so far.

"I'll be honest with you, Roman," Laughed Nysa. "I didn't think you'd make it through with the bullshit the DVC's been giving your sire." She reached into her bag and tossed him a bottle, filled with blood. "Here- from Vorador's private stash. Consider it a gift."

Roman pulled out the cork and breathed in the scent. He exhaled in a shaking sigh. "Oh yeah, that's the good shit." He took a sip. "I owe you one- they say the Serioli method was the best way to preserve the flavour."

Nysa chuckled and knocked back the last of her beer. "Yeah, well. I wouldn't know for sure. It all smells the same to me."

Another among the group, Tallie, spoke up. "Is Lycella still bugging you about being turned?" She asked.

"Yep." Nysa pulled out another ale and uncapped the bottle. "But hey, we're not here to talk about the jerks I'll be calling my nestmates. C'mon, Roman, give us a show."

Roman set the bottle down and stood in front of the fire. "Okay- watch this." He rolled back his sleeve, then stuck his hand into the flames, but it didn't burn him. Everyone cheered and clapped.

"Damn!" Laughed Tallie. "Immunity on the first change! The DVC's gonna hate you for that!"

"Why do you think they use bullets now, mate?" Piped up another, an older vampire that everyone just called Tibs. "You know, unless you get immunity to that on your next change."

Roman laughed at that, and so did the others. Well, save for Pard. He looked nervous again, like he'd said something he wasn't supposed to that would warrant a beating as he stared into the woods. Nysa noticed this- she usually noticed when people weren't talking when they should be.

"What do you see, Pard?" She asked, finishing off her beer. "Ferals? Hunters?"

Pard just shook his head. "You're in trouble, m'lady. Charon. And Atticus."

"Fuck." She tossed the bottle aside. "Scatter, I got this covered."

"You're sure you wanna face this alone?" Tibs asked.

"You're not as old as they are. Atticus will probably mess up your brains and Charon's a walking tank." Nysa gestured, and a small gang of ghouls dragged themselves out of the ground. "I'll handle this. Scram." They all ran off into the thick of the woods, back towards town, and Nysa hopped off the headstone she'd been sitting on as her two colleagues showed up. "Good evening, gentlemen," She greeted casually.

"No games, girl," Snapped Atticus. "Ullara's asking for you."

"Look, I know you're Ullara's bitch and everything, but if Madame Night-Of-The-Living-Mummy wants me, she can come and get me." Nysa picked up another beer, then cracked it open and took a swig. "Besides, it's a nice night and I'd like to drink this in peace."

"Impudent girl," The Mind Guardian growled. "You think that your inherited wealth means you are above the Circle's summons"?

"On the contrary, yes." She dug out a pendant from under her top and held it up, smirking as the jagged piece of crystal that hung from it glowed.

Both guardians were suddenly on their knees, Atticus' face twisting painfully. "Where did you get that?!" He spat.

"I'm sure you'd like to know. Look, Tick- don't be cute." She shoved her hand in her pocket and tossed back another swig of her beer. "Threatening me ain't gonna fly. I do whatever I want until I'm old enough to be turned, and I sure as shit won't stop then." She walked past them, digging her phone out of her pocket to check the time. "You know how this works? Radius of about a kilometre, you'll be fine when you're out of range of me." She looked to the ghouls. "Make sure they don't follow." They gave no indication that they understood, but they stayed anyway.

With Atticus spitting livid behind her, Nysa put her headphones on and started blasting heavy metal while texting Thea. It was usually like this whenever someone amongst the Circle wanted something. Usually it was just Charon, but to have both the Conflict guardian _and_ Atticus usually meant that Ullara, the Time guardian, was up to something and was trying to get Nysa to collude with her on it. Time guardians typically were sneaky and manipulative, with the occasional good egg too few and far between. If Nysa knew her history right, Ullara was right up there with Mobius, a Timestreamer who was famous for pulling everyone's strings to enact the will of a parasitic entity named the Elder God who lived deep beneath the very stone of Nosgoth for countless millennia until it was defeated by Kain some thousands of years ago with the help of Vorador.

Unfortunately, Vorador had died six years ago when a termination order was posted for him based on completely false allegations, and he left his vast wealth and possessions to Nysa, effective immediately upon the will being read. The other guardians had been livid that their sire would leave all his wealth to her. She wasn't very popular, which was why she had Thea and the gaggle of Avernusite vampires she'd been hanging with earlier. The money had gone to her staying in school and, more recently, university, making her better educated than those she would have called her nestmates, had the old vampire still lived. She would have gladly let him turn her, too- he'd basically raised her, better than her handlers ever could have.

The mansion was humongous, still as grandiose and well-hidden in the Termogent Forest that linked Avernus to Natchtholm to the east, and Uschtenheim to the North, through a long dirt road that hadn't been used in a long time. It had been built in the early days of Nosgoth's history, almost like a private kingdom. Once, it had been a citadel for the Ancient Vampires, complete with elegant architecture and beautiful stone statues and frescoes that decorated the courtyards. The Nature guardian, Eire, tended the gardens jealously and would snap at anyone who so much as slightly disturbed a single leaf. Nysa would spend hours here when she was younger, when Eire could still stand her. But then she accidentally trampled a tulip and it was never the same.

She pushed the wrought-iron gate open and slipped through, not really bothering to close it behind her as she walked through the gardens and towards the front door. She was sure that, the moment she walked in, it would be the usual scathing looks from everyone that she was getting a little sick of. Seven years and these idiots couldn't get over the fact that the entirety of Vorador's estate was hers now. You'd think that, as vampires, they'd let go of this stuff, but considering she was about eleven years off being turned there was a slim chance she'd ever stop waving that in their faces. Eire passed her as she walked through the door, giving a sneer as the Nature guardian walked by her, but Nysa just rolled her eyes and walked on, receiving similar glances- how predictable.

It didn't break her stride as she walked up the steps. All things considered, she was a bit of a rock star among this lot. She'd heard in passing, that she was like Kain's firstborn, Raziel, before his fall- too arrogant, too comfortable in being the favourite. From what Nysa had heard of his exploits, she was proud of that allusion. She walked into Vorador's study to find Ullara sitting in his chair, a poisoned smile on her lips. Compared to her sister Lycella, Ullara was definitely not as easy on the eyes- she looked about as inviting as a snake, just as Mobius had been, thin-lipped and sharp-featured, while Lycella was far more fair of form, even after the evolutions she had endured. The only thing Ullara had going for her was her wit and her power, and of that she had plenty.

"My dear Nysa," She said, smiling in a way that almost made the Death guardian want to gag. "I'm glad to see you home safe."

"Yeah, the fuck you are," Nysa snapped. "Get out of his chair before I feed you to the ferals."

Ullara stood, putting her bony hand to her breast with a pout that would have been pitiful had it not been forced. "You wound me, dear girl. Out of everyone here, have I not been a good friend to you? How can you treat your nestmate so cruelly?"

Nysa eyed her as she crossed around to sit in Vorador's chair. "You're about as jealous as the rest of 'em- at least Lycella doesn't send her pets to fetch me if she has need of me." She leaned back with her arms on the armrests like some sort of princess. "Now, what do you want?"

The pout dropped, but it was replaced by another fake smile. "I have some information on what our dearly departed sire was researching before his untimely death," She explained, putting her fingertips together as she paced slowly back and forth in front of the desk. "As we all know, Kain simply disappeared some thousands of years ago, and no one seems to know why." She gestured to the maps and notes laid out on the desk. "From this, it appears that Vorador was attempting to recover the Soul Reaver."

Nysa looked at the papers in front of her, various pages documenting Vorador's findings- it was definitely the old vampire's handwriting. "So what do you want me to do about it?" She asked. "And what would you want with the Soul Reaver, Ullara? Your arms would snap off if you tried to lift it."

Ullara looked about ready to snap at her- she was so easy to mess with. "I want nothing with the sword, per se, I merely thought it would be of some importance to you." She tilted her head inquisitively. "Were you not his favourite? The one he treated as if you were his own?" Her long fingers tapped together. "Umah would have wanted to finish what he started- who says you should not do the same?" From the purr in her voice, Nysa could only guess two things- she expected her to die trying and was appealing to sentiment to make her go marching off to her doom, or she genuinely wanted to finish what Vorador started but thought it was easier to send the Death guardian to do it for her and then take the spoils for herself afterwards.

Nysa decided she wasn't going to play this game- she would make her move at her own leisure. "I'm not Umah," She said firmly. "But I'll consider it." She narrowed her eyes at the Timestreamer. "Now get out, you reek of mothballs and I don't want you stinking up the place."

"Why are we not friends, dear Nysa?" Ullara circled around and put a hand on her shoulder, gripping it slightly. "As tarnished as their reputations were, Mobius and Mortanius were good friends while leading the Sarafan."

"Mobius was a fucking traitor. Mortanius at least had the dignity to try and fix the mess he made." Nysa's tone was cold, as if preparing to fight. "Unless you're trying to imply something? I wouldn't put it past you to do something equally as stupid as the shit Mobius pulled."

Ullara released her, then crossed around to the door with an equally cold look. "I do hope you'll consider what I've told you." Her golden eyes narrowed at her. "Goodnight."

With that, she shut the door behind her, leaving Nysa to her thoughts as she looked over the maps again. She'd have to ask Thea for help at university tomorrow- she was useless reading them, and she was better at history. It was probably one of the reasons the young Death Guardian got along so well with her. Thea was Irish-American, her parents having moved to Nosgoth with her when she was a baby, and probably the only person in her immediate circle of friends who didn't know she was a Pillar Guardian- it was for the best. Pillar Guardians weren't thought of very highly despite their position in Nosgothic society, and Nysa couldn't bear the thought of her best friend thinking so lowly of her.

The next day came, and Nysa managed to leave early for university. She would have driven there, but Wattz, the Energy guardian, had blown up her car a few months ago for an 'experiment' and she hadn't bothered wasting money on a new one. Student debt was not something she wanted to deal with after she'd been turned, so Nysa had been using the money she'd been left to pay for course fees. Besides, the journey to her campus consisted of a long walk through a nice, quiet part of the woods that ended in the cafe strip of Avernus' city centre, which was often crowded in the morning by coffee-cup zombies making their way to the train station for work, and the occasional sire come to pick up a foolish fledgling that had stayed out too late. Tallie had recalled fondly how her sire had to come and pick up three of her nestmates during the twenties when they'd gone out to a social party and forgot the time.

As usual, Nysa would find Thea sitting in the outdoor seating area of their favourite coffee shop, a cute little Austrian place with more coffee choices than anyone could count on their fingers and toes, so of course it was popular. Thea waved her over when she saw her. "Hey! How was last night?" She chirruped, kissing Nysa on both cheeks. "What's Roman like? Hope he's nice, I hear his sire's a pompous little so-and-so."

"He's great, Tallie described him pretty well." Nysa sat down across from her.

"No ferals?" Thea asked again.

"No, no ferals. They've been quiet lately, that's what I hear." Nysa ran a hand through her dark hair, hastily straightened in the rush to get out the door that morning and sticking out in some places.

"Ugh, thank God. I couldn't bear to see you turn into one." Thea reached over and held her hand. "What could make a fledgling go that bad?"

Nysa sighed. "Wish I knew." Oh, she did know- fledglings go into a feeding frenzy after their first awakening. If not sated, they slowly go mad from hunger and go on the hunt for victims. Vorador had told her that a long time ago. "Anyways, I have some stuff I dug up that I think you're gonna love."

Thea's keen blue eyes locked on her. "Tell me."

"Later." Nysa looked around. Some older vampires knew Vorador and who she was, so she had to make sure none of them were around while she was talking to Thea, lest they blow her cover. "Let's just say it's sensitive information- look, we'll handle this after history- we'll go to the library and talk about it there."

"By 'sensitive information', I hope that doesn't mean you stole it." The other girl crossed her arms.

Nysa held up her hands. "I am not a crook, okay? I have my sources."

"Your 'sources' seem to be the reason you get in trouble so much, though." Thea finished off her coffee. "Look, Nysa- your little escapades usually end with us both getting in trouble. Remember the time you tried to get us into the catacombs under the Cathedral? We got arrested for trespassing until that Lycella lady posted the bail."

"Yeah, and? We didn't really get charged with anything. The priest just thought we were there to graffiti stuff or whatever." Nysa leaned forward. "Look, Thea. I just need your help decoding this stuff. You don't have to come with me. Promise."

Thea stared at her long and hard, and eventually gave a long sigh. "Okay. What do you need?"


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N:**_ _No one's reading this? Seriously? Ah well. Gonna upload the next chapter anyway. Also in case anyone's wondering, I don't know what the currency is in Nosgoth so I made it up. Brecken is Copper, Litas is silver and Zaire is gold._

* * *

After history, Thea and Nysa went to the campus' library, where Nysa brought out the maps and started to explain the situation. "So, I've heard that this map leads to the Tomb of Kain- but it's so old that it's not entirely accurate. I figured you'd know something about how to fix that."

"You are up to no good again, aren't you." Thea crossed her arms. "Nysa, I swear—"

"Thea, please." Nysa held her hands. "This is seriously important to me- I can't tell you why, but it is. I have to find this tomb before someone else does."

Thea just sighed. Nysa had always been a peculiar girl in this aspect, like she was living this secret life that she didn't want her to know about- and she'd been this way since high school. She remembered meeting Nysa in Year Seven and being drawn to the punk outfits and crazy-coloured hair and the don't care attitude she had. She wanted to be like her in that way, even if Nysa was a troublemaker at times. She wanted to be mysterious and carefree and cocky, too. (And find out the secret to her perfect eyeliner wings.) This time, however, Thea wanted a payment- this was her chance to figure out why Nysa had so many secrets. "Okay. I'll help. But on one condition."

Nysa blinked and pulled her fringe out of her eyes. "Name it."

"You have to take me with you."

The other girl gave her an apprehensive look. "I thought you said you didn't want to go."

"You said I didn't have to. But I'm tired of you keeping secrets- if you're going to find this Tomb, I want to at least find out why."

Nysa just stared at her. "It could be dangerous."

"If you're involved, it's bound to be. I'm used to it by now." Thea kept her arms crossed, her chin jutted evenly so she looked taller than her friend- she knew she hated it. "You take me with you, or it's no deal."

The dark-haired girl took a deep breath in and out, measured and frosty as her tone. "Fine. But if I tell you not to ask about something, you keep your mouth shut and trust me. Okay?"

Thea tried not to look smug, but it was a little difficult knowing she'd managed to successfully change Nysa's mind for once. "And if I ask a question anyway?"

"You won't get an answer."

"Sure."

"I'm serious. There are things I know about that you're not supposed to. Knowing said things could get you killed." Nysa was usually laid back and all shrugs and chuckles, but this was definitely new. "And if I told you what I knew and why I knew it, you'd never think of me the same."

Always so dramatic. "Fine, whatever. Now, do you wanna find this thing or not?"

They got to work, comparing a more recent map of various cities around Nosgoth and cross-referencing it with Nysa's old map, narrowing down the possibilities of where the tomb could be. Their first choice was Coorhagen, the recorded birthplace of Kain and therefore the logical choice, but it seemed too easy. It was recorded that Kain had risen from the dead there, but he had completely vanished all those years ago- he'd need to be somewhere specific. Their second choice was the Pillars, south of Nachtholm, but it was off-limits to everyone except the Pillar Guardians, save for a few select festival days, meaning it would be hard to get into- and Nysa was hopeful that it wouldn't come to her having to tell the truth if Kain really was buried under the Pillars and they needed to get there. Then there was their third choice- the Chronoplast, an ancient time-streaming machine built beneath the very stone of Nosgoth itself and fabled to be somewhere up in the mountains that towered over the Termogent Forest. It had been Mobius' favourite toy back in the day, and what he based his time-streaming chambers off of when he built them, but this was the original, said to have been constructed by the Ancient Vampires. Kain had taken a liking to it, or so it was written, so now they had three places to search.

"So now what?" Asked Thea. "There's no train service to Coorhagen- we'd have to get the bus from the Wasserbunde terminal."

"Aye, and the ticket costs too much," Nysa sighed. "Three bloody Zaire for a ten-minute drive, it's ridiculous. I could just drive us there instead."

"Yeah, but it takes longer and the road goes through the woods." Thea looked at her with her arms crossed. "Safer to take the train, even if it is expensive."

"Yeah, well. One Zaire and thirty Litas for a full tank of petrol that'll get us to Coorhagen and back compared to three Zaire? I'd prefer the drive."

"But the woods!"

"Ferals are nocturnal and we'd clear it in about an hour." Nysa smirked. "What's the matter, scared?"

Thea frowned. "Uh, hello? I don't give a damn what you say, I don't want to take chances with a feral."

"You plug it full of bullets and it dies. It's not rocket science." Nysa shrugged.

"With what gun, Nysa?"

"I have one. Not on me, but I have one."

Thea blanched. "Y-you...what?"

"I live near the woods. It's just a necessary precaution." The dark-haired girl leaned back in her chair and put her feet up on the desk. "So, you can pick. We either take Coorhagen, the Chronoplast, or the Pillars." She started to fiddle with her tongue piercing.

Thea watched her in shocked silence for a few moments more, before sighing and leaning over the maps again. "Okay, well, let's leave the Pillars as a last resort."

"Cool by me." Nysa sounded a little too relieved at that. Thea could only wonder why.

"So," She continued, "That leaves Coorhagen as a good starting point."

"Aye?"

"I mean, the Chronoplast is said to be outside of Wasserbunde, and that's not far from Coorhagen, right?" Thea smiled. "It's like, a half-hour drive."

"Yeah, that can work. I'm still cool to drive us to Coorhagen." Nysa started to fiddle with the coin-like pendant on her choker, emblazoned with the image of a dragon coiled intricately around the image of a phoenix. "I'll need to get some stuff from home."

"Fair enough." Thea started to put away all the books. "Hey, we have that history paper coming up, right? Let's get some good snaps of the Zeigsturhl ruins while we're up there."

Nysa smiled and packed up the maps. "It'll be a good one, I'm sure."

* * *

The girls went their separate ways, agreeing to go up on the weekend, and Nysa made sure Thea was out of sight before she ducked into an alleyway. Then, making sure no one was around, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, focusing energies between her hands. Suddenly filled with the promise of everywhere, she chose one specific place and willed herself there. In a flash of light, she suddenly came to stand at the gate to the Pillars, where armed guards stood watch. They raised their guns at her, but Nysa didn't flinch.

"State your business! This area is off-limits!"

"Save for Pillar Guardians, right?" She rolled up her sleeve to show a mark on her left forearm. "I am Nysa, Guardian of Death. Let me pass."

A soldier came and inspected the mark, then looked to the soldiers on top of the gate. With a barked order, the soldiers saluted her as it opened. She walked past them, the gate shutting behind her as she continued down the stone steps until she saw the huge marble monoliths that reached up into dizzying heights above the clouds. Nysa gave a long sigh as she continued towards them. She'd come here once with Vorador, not long before he died, when he tried to give her some perspective on her place among the other Guardians, explaining the elements and what her role would be as Death Guardian- most duties associated with that role rarely came to pass, since the Pillar Guardians' reputation was so blackened by previous transgressions. She sat by her Pillar, her symbol carved into it, and let her back rest against the cool stone.

It was some years ago, around the time that the Second World War had started, that her predecessor stood here with the others, casting an enchantment that would seal off the entire country from the outside world. Through the war, Nosgoth suffered- starved of imports of medicine that could have kept the country alive, so many died of sickness. Some vampires were desperate to keep feeding that they started to eat from the corpses and soon died off over time or turned to eating rats if they were that hungry and didn't feel like dying. Some starved to death, not wanting to drink poisonous dead-man blood or wanting to be known as a rat-sucker. By the end of it and the shield was lifted, Nosgoth was under the magnifying glass as the United Nations picked the Guardians' decision apart. While the world was watching Nazis being put on trial for warcrimes, they called Nosgoth a worse hell than Auschwitz, the Vatican pushed their religious agenda by trying harder to convert the country to Christianity and decrying the faith in the Guardians and the Pillars and calling it a vicious trap of fear.

It didn't come to pass. Something akin to Christianity had lead to Nosgoth almost being destroyed once in the distant past- it was still hilarious to tell Americans that there was no Christian church here. No one felt the need to worship any other Gods after the Elder God was toppled. The Pillars were a necessity, despite the claims of outsiders- but the citizens of Nosgoth could never trust the Pillar Guardians since that day. Ullara and Lycella had only been fledglings during that time, going through their state of change during the war and emerging afterwards to accusations of war crimes. Lycella at least looked like she regretted it, but even though she hadn't been alive when that decision was made, Nysa felt an immense guilt knowing the poor opinion people had of the Guardians. It was why it was almost impossible for Vorador to get her into a school when she was younger. She didn't get into a real school until Seventh Form, and that was when Lycella had taken over the duties of the Sire in the house.

"Wolves lose no sleep over the opinion of sheep, child," Vorador had said. It was supposed to be some metaphor about the worthy being able to see past titles and reputation to get to know the person behind them, but it didn't get across very well. All the same, Nysa could only stare up at the impossible height of her pillar and wonder if it was time to tell Thea the truth and pray for the best, but fear kept that at bay. Thea's family didn't hold a high opinion of vampires, so how was Nysa supposed to tell her best friend that she was being turned into one in eleven years on top of her being a Guardian and a Necromancer? Necromancers were hated just about as much as the Pillar Guardians were!

A few deep breaths, in and out, slow and measured. Worse come to worst, she'd know if Thea was a wolf or a sheep. She could only hope for the best at this point. Thea's opinion of her was less of a problem considering the Soul Reaver was up for grabs. That much was more of a concern than the opinion of a mortal.

* * *

Returning home that night, Lycella stood waiting for her in the foyer, a bundle tucked under one arm. "Welcome home."

"Lycella." Nysa gave a nod, then made to walk past the Balance Guardian, but she caught her by the shoulder. "What?"

"We need to have a talk."

"No we don't."

"Yes, we do." Lycella's tone was stern. "Nysa, you know I'm not your enemy. I'm not my sister."

"Thank god for that," The Death Guardian remarked humorlessly.

"But I have something for you," Lycella continued. "Something our Sire wanted to give you before he died." She passed the bundle to Nysa- it had a defined weight to it beneath the cloth, and Nysa gently unwrapped it, soon finding the glint of a blade, and a letter tucked between the folds of the cloth. "I know you're going to find the Soul Reaver." The Balance Guardian rubbed her arms. "If you find it, promise me that you'll keep it safe. That blade was Vorador's greatest creation, but it is extremely powerful. You might not be able to wield it."

Nysa smirked. "No pressure."

"Nosgoth's past is forged in treachery and betrayal, child. Take whatever allies you can." She sighed. "I...hope you can accept me as one. I'm not trying to replace our Sire—"

"He was your sire, Lycella," The Death Guardian sighed. "Not mine." She re-wrapped the bundle, but before she could thank her, the piercing voice of Eire scoffed from the top of the stairs.

"Pearls before swine," She snipped. "Why bother letting a weed take root?"

Nysa looked up at her and scowled. Lycella just sighed. "Eire, go and eat. You get grumpy when you haven't eaten."

"Acts like she owns the place," The Nature Guardian grumbled.

"I do, actually." Nysa's smile was mirthless and cold. "Still gonna be mine when I'm turned. Do us both a favour and get the fuck over it." Eire scowled back, then vanished, probably to feed. "You see why I hate these people?"

"Solomon was the same, but he at least tried to get along with them," Lycella reasoned.

"Solomon got caught kidnapping innocent people to experiment on," Nysa snapped back. "So if you're implying that I'm anything like that fucking psycho, shove it. Thanks for the present." With that, she took the bundle and went upstairs.

* * *

The weekend rolled around. Nysa waited at the graveyard with a duffle bag full of clothes and various other items, along with the bundle Lycella had given her, with the letter she'd found with it in her hands. The wax seal on it was definitely Vorador's- the same emblem on her choker adorned it, a dragon coiled around a phoenix. With a sigh, she stuffed it in her messenger bag with her laptop. Not yet. She'd probably start crying- and Nysa hated crying. It was unflattering, and she'd make her mascara run if she did. The last thing she needed was for Thea to start worrying as well as trying to pry into things she didn't need to know about. And speak of the devil, she rolled up about ten paces away in her maroon Mitsubishi Verada and got out with a smile as she walked over and hugged her, kissing her on both cheeks as usual. "Ready for our big trip?" She asked with a grin. "I put together a few playlists for the road. All the good stuff."

Nysa chuckled and picked up her bag. "You're pretty hyped up for a trip to find some vampire lord's tomb."

"I can't help it, it's never been discovered and we could be the ones to make the big find!" Thea was practically beaming. "We'll be famous! Two ancient history majors making the discovery of the century! Museums across the world will pay us millions for the artefacts!"

Nysa set a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Not likely- look, let's settle on finding the place first, yeah? Then we'll worry about international acclaim later." She started walking towards the car, grunting under the weight of her duffel bag. She'd had to pick a pretty large one to hide her new scythe in- but it was a rather weird scythe. There was a clip of bullets that came with it. Maybe the letter had instructions, but that could wait for later. For now, it was best to get on the road and enjoy the trip while they still could. They did also have a paper to write, so at least she could make a start on that up until Nachtholm, then the drive could take her mind off of things.


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N:** Still no one reading this. Well, I need to put it somewhere. _

* * *

It had started to rain as they got on the highway to Nachtholm, so traffic was backed up for miles. Nysa had tried not to look out the window, at the Pillars in the distance, but she knew Thea was looking at them, and it bothered her like a persistent mosquito.

"Quite a sight, isn't it?" Thea said with a smile. "I mean, it's no Eiffel Tower, but it's still mystifying to look at."

Nysa gave a thoughtful hum in reply. Mystifying wasn't the word she'd choose. Ominous, perhaps, a grim reminder of what she could look forward to in her future. She gripped the steering wheel, watching the windshield wipers flick from side to side on the glass, the rubber edges squeaking. They had been crawling along slowly but surely for the past kilometre, and by now Nysa was ready to blow her cover and start making ghouls appear to throw cars out of the way just so they could keep moving; she just wanted to get out of there.

"Fuck this weather," She groaned, leaning her head down on the steering wheel.

"Tell me about it. Kinda reminds me of our impromptu sleepovers." Thea smiled over at her. "Hey, you never really told me who that woman was- the one who kept coming to get you when the rain stopped."

"No one you need to know about." Nysa gave her a look.

"Why not? I mean, she seemed like a vampire."

"I'm invoking the "Don't Ask" clause."

"I'm invoking the exception to the "Don't Ask" clause." Thea crossed her arms. "Doesn't count if I think the secret you're keeping is dangerous to your wellbeing."

"It's not, trust me." Nysa's tone was firm. "Don't. Ask."

Thea gave her a look, then shrugged and went back to looking out the window. "You're gonna have to tell me eventually- you know that, right?"

The other girl just sighed. "...I know. Just...not now."

"Nysa—"

"Thea. Please." The traffic started to move again, and Nysa finally had the car moving. "There are some things I'm not ready to talk about yet. Give me time."

Thea just sighed and opened up her laptop, fingers tapping against the keys. "Whatever- it's not like I'm not used to you not trusting me."

"I do, Thea. I just need you to trust me." If she would believe me, Nysa thought sadly, she would know I say that to protect her. Knowing that she had to keep so much from someone she considered so dear a friend was painful enough. She would have to tell Thea eventually, just...not yet.

They drove in to Nachtholm, stopping at a local B&B for the night, which Nysa paid for. "Right- tomorrow, if we're up early enough, we'll be able to see the Zeigsturhl ruins and grab some photographs for that paper," She explained, setting her stuff on the bed. "We don't want to burn any more daylight than need be."

"Why's that?" Thea asked, untangling her charger cables from one another.

"Ferals." Nysa sat on the bed. "I heard downstairs in the pub that there's some hunters gearing up to go out there and cull them, so we don't wanna be there when they start."

Thea shivered. "Ugh, rather not."

"Told you so." Nysa dug her phone out of her pocket and stood up, crossing to the door leading out to a balcony.

"Where are you going?" Thea asked. "I thought we were getting dinner."

"Just gotta make a call." The dark-haired girl shot her friend a smile. "Five minutes, okay?"

"Who're you calling?"

Nysa seemed to think about this for a minute. "I guess you could say we're sisters." And that was the only explanation she gave before closing the screen door behind her. Thea was confused. Nysa never mentioned having family, let alone a sister. She'd mentioned an 'old man' once or twice, but otherwise nothing. Then again, with how little Nysa spoke of her family, Thea supposed she could be forgiven for thinking that they weren't on such great terms- just another part of the walking mystery Nysa seemed to be, she supposed.

* * *

Nysa sighed as she scrolled through her contacts and found the number she was looking for. Part of her had hoped she wouldn't have to call her 'sister', considering the terms they were on, but this was important. If anyone knew where Kain went and hid the Soul Reaver, it was Umah.

Before he'd known Nysa, Umah was the closest thing Vorador had to a daughter, back during the days of the Cabal, a vampire resistance group formed following the first collapse of the Pillars and the resurgence of the Sarafan Order. It was her death at Kain's hands that had initially cemented Vorador's dislike of him, only for her to be mysteriously resurrected later on- and even then the circumstances of that were long since lost to the ages. She didn't talk about it, really. And after Kain up and vanished, she stayed with Vorador until he was given the duty of siring the Pillar Guardians. She probably met her a handful of times in person, but at least she was someone Nysa felt she could trust.

"Nysa? This had best be important." Her silky, but stern voice was a welcome comfort.

"Turns out the old man was looking for the Reaver before he was offed," Nysa explained. Best to get to the point, she guessed. Umah hated to beat around the bush and she wanted to make this quick.

"If he did, he never shared that information with me." Umah's tone was quite serious- whatever her rotten brood had done to earn her ire, she was setting it aside. She'd seen firsthand what the Soul Reaver could do. "Who told you this?"

Nysa leaned on the railing of the balcony, gazing out over the town. "Ullara. She's been in Vorador's things again, it seems."

Umah gave a long sigh. "If the Timestreamer has informed you, there's a chance she's lying- you do understand this, do you not?"

"Of course- all the more reason for me to find it first." Nysa smirked. "C'mon- you of all people should know where Kain hid the Reaver, or where it might be."

Umah was quiet for a moment. "I'm afraid I don't know, either. Even I was unaware of his sudden disappearance or the reason for it."

Nysa just nodded. "Right."

"But I'm guessing," The vampiress continued, "You wouldn't have started this quest without an idea of where to look?"

"We've got three ideas. Coorhagen, the Chronoplast and the Pillars," The Death Guardian explained. "Any opinion on that, Sister?"

Umah paused. "Yes, they all sound like sound ideas to start- but you'd be wasting your time in Coorhagen. Kain's tomb is indeed there, but there was nothing really in it when his family buried him. And you said 'we'?"

"Thea's with me." Nysa admitted.

"Then if your search comes to the Pillars, are you prepared for her to know the truth?" Umah's voice took on a tone of concern. "You can't hide it from her forever."

Nysa glanced over her shoulder at Thea, who was just returning with containers full of Chinese food, then looked back into the distance. "Wolves care little for the opinion of cattle," She recited. "What are you betting?"

"I do not gamble with such things, but I honestly hope it goes right for you, Sister."

"So do I."

* * *

Zeigsturhl used to be a rather quiet and prosperous little town- but you couldn't possibly tell by the state of it. Around the time Kain had begun his conquest of Nosgoth, this place had been built up and burnt down countless times until it was finally left to wither, and had recently become a breeding ground for ferals come nightfall. Nysa and Thea had come here early, taking a less-used dirt road through the woods by the Lake of Tears, after sleeping through the night with bellies full of Chinese take-out. Once again, the Pillars loomed in the distance, and Nysa did her best not to look at them while praying Thea wouldn't ask about it. Thankfully, Thea had immediately gotten to work on her friend's suggestion of working quickly before the hunters from the B n' B showed up to start work on culling the ferals, unpacking her camera and setting up the tripod.

Italy had Pompeii and Herculaneum, Russia had Chernobyl, Japan had their memorial sites for Nagasaki and Hiroshima, but when it came to the devastation Kain had wrought in his ignorance, places like Zeighsturhl were living testimony. Some rumoured that the old Kainite vampire clans still lived, with fishermen bringing back tales of the giant, fish-like Rahabim swarming under their boats in dark waters, and some swore there were still insectoid Zephonim lurking beneath the stone of Avernus. The worst anyone had to worry about here in Zeighsturhl was the nests of ferals that hunters had been slowly clearing out over the years.

Nysa felt the weight of the scythe on her back. She'd briefly looked over the mechanism the night before, and got a bit of a laugh out of it- Towards the end of his life, Vorador had become fascinated with the trick weapons used in the nineteenth century by vampire hunters. It was an odd thing for a vampire to take an interest in the weapons of his enemies, but he'd started to experiment with different mechanisms, and this was by far the most successful of them. It's one thing to want to build a trick weapon, but it's another altogether to actually create one. This scythe doubled as a rifle, though Nysa was unsure of the range as of yet. Vorador had given her weapon training when she was younger, so using this wouldn't be too hard. It was just a matter of applying what she knew.

They approached what was left of a large house, thought to be owned by a noble family whose name had long since been lost to history, its walls crumbling, the wooden floors now no more than rotten, jagged remnants jutting out from the stone interior, and it was nearly impossible to get inside since the roof had caved in some years ago, blocking the entrance. Nysa stuck her hands in her pockets. "...I bet you I could climb that wall."

"You'll break your neck," Thea shot back, setting up the camera.

"Fair enough." Nysa smirked. "It'd look cool though."

Thea hummed in response before cursing in English under her breath. "I don't have the right lens for the shot."

Nysa gave a half-smile- she didn't speak English that well, but she understood something was up. "Want me to run back and get it?"

"Yeah, but please be quick. This place gives me the creeps." Thea rubbed her arms. "And the days are shorter- I don't wanna get caught by a feral."

Nysa nodded and jogged back through the ruins towards the car, but the presence of pale figures darting in between the trees made her uneasy. She took the scythe from her back, the blade just scraping the dirt as it unfolded, just as a pale, emaciated figure burst from the bushes and lunged at her. Nysa swung the scythe in an upwards arch, and the blade soon neatly bifurcated the feral, its insides suddenly on its outsides and head cleaved vertically in two before it even hit the ground. For a moment, Nysa paid a glance to the black blade of the scythe and sent a small thanks to wherever Vorador's soul now rested, before racing back to find Thea, who looked rather confused.

"What's up?"

"Feral just jumped me out of nowhere," Nysa grumbled. "Had to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine- I thought ferals hated sunlight." Thea started to pack up her camera.

"A lot of these ruins are shaded by trees and cast a lot of shadow." Nysa looked around, noticing more pale shapes darting between the trees. "I think this old house is a nest- let's get moving."

The girls hurried back into what was once the town square, where the sun was unhindered by branches and leaves, and though Nysa knew how to regulate her breathing so she wouldn't get tired out so easily, Thea didn't. She was starting to stumble and go red in the face, leaning on Nysa for support as her legs started to shake. "I...c-can't run...anymore..."

"We're almost out," Nysa reassured her. "Just gotta make it to the car. I'll drive." She started helping her along the path, noticing the SUVs rolling up at the other end, and men and women had started to get out and unload various heavy crates- most likely guns and ammunition. Nysa almost laughed- they were right on time.

She left Thea to get her breath back in the passenger seat while she went to one of the hunters, a large man in his fifties with greying hair. "I'd suggest the Lord's Manor if you're looking for a nest," She told him, planting her hands on her hips.

"Were you attacked?" He asked.

"Got jumped by one, yeah, but I'm fine." She gestured to the scythe on her back with a nod of her head. "They're getting ambitious, though."

"Come to do some hunting, then?" The man turned to take a shotgun out of one of the crates, loading some slugs into the barrel.

"Research, actually- for a paper." Nysa watched him work.

"Then you'd best head home, little girl. Adults are working here." He shot her a look that said he was done talking, but Nysa wasn't fazed.

"Best of luck to you, then. Vae Victus, hunter." She could almost feel the odd look he was giving her as she walked back to the car.

Thea looked up at her. "What was that about?"

"Just letting that hunter know what happened." She smirked. "Good timing, eh? C'mon. Let's go- I think we're gonna need some petrol. I'll buy us lunch."

* * *

The petrol station lunch consisted of some cold chicken salad sandwiches, ice tea and a couple of chocolate bars, and Nysa had paid for the lot. So there they were, sitting on the hood of Thea's car in the parking lot with their lunches in their laps. Nysa had munched through one of her sandwiches already and was washing it down when Thea broke the mutual silence.

"What was that thing you said to the hunter? Vae Victus?" She asked. "It's Latin, right?"

Nysa finished her mouthful of ice tea. "Yeah. It means 'woe to the conquered'."

"Wasn't it used when you defeated someone?" Thea leaned in a bit.

"It was also used to wish someone luck when hunting or going off to war." Nysa gave her a look. "Why do you want to know?"

"It's just...well." Thea cleared her throat. "I've never known you to be the sort to say stuff like that."

"My old man used to say it when we played chess together," Nysa explained, shrugging casually. "Kinda grew on me, I guess."

"Was he a historian? No one I know says that." Thea tried smiling- she herself was a history buff, so she decided it mightn't have fallen within the definition of the 'Don't Ask' clause.

"Something like that." Nysa started biting into her other sandwich. "Had a lot of old stuff lying around the house. Left it all to me when he died."

"Like what?"

"Why do you wanna know?" Nysa asked through a mouthful. "Wanna buy some?"

"No, it's just..." Thea sighed. "You're not gonna tell me, are you."

"Nope."

* * *

They returned to the B n' B, picked up their stuff and started making their way up towards Coorhagen. Thea drove this time, while Nysa worked on the report. She'd pretty much finished, so the pictures were just an added bonus. All she had to do was wrangle the footnotes and citations, and since she was feeling generous she was doing it for both hers and Thea's reports.

"So, did your sister say what we'd find in Coorhagen?" Thea asked.

"Lots of nothing," Nysa replied. "She suggested the Chronoplast would be a better idea."

"Yeah, but it's about as off-limits as the Pillars." Thea looked at her friend. "Unless, you've got a way in?"

"You know it." Nysa smirked behind her bangs. "There's a guy at the university who owes my old man a favour- I intend to collect."

Coorhagen had become one of the most prosperous cities, rising to the top with Avernus following not long afterwards, and after that the palace city of Willendorf. It wasn't as fashionable as Avernus, but it was home to some of the country's richest families, vampire or otherwise. Nysa managed to get them both lodgings at a dorm on the University campus, and while Thea went sightseeing, Nysa could finally drop her facade. She dressed in something decent and walked towards the office of one Doctor Robl.

Robl was a Historian from Vienna who had met Vorador when he first came to Nosgoth to study the ruins of the Kainite clans and how they lived for a book he was writing. After that, it sort of led to a fascination with Vampiric culture that compelled him to stay in Nosgoth. He himself did not desire the Dark Gift, but according to what Vorador had told her, Nysa knew the man would probably be asking a lot of questions. She had long since trained herself to be careful with people who did that, but considering she needed a favour and this man was an expert, she had very little choice. So now, she sat in this man's office, adorned in a black, full length dress with long, mesh sleeves that were embroidered with velveteen flowers around the shoulders and cuffs, and waited for him to arrive.


End file.
